Today, at a media event in New York, T-Mobile announced that it's finally ready to join the big-boy world of LTE networks. The initial round of activations match up just about perfectly with the earlier leaks. Major cities include Houston, Las Vegas, Washington D.C. and more. The proper 4G network can be used with the new "Uncarrier" plans that just went live a couple days ago.

Here's the full list of launch cities:

Baltimore

Houston

Kansas City

Las Vegas

Phoenix

San Jose

Washington, D.C.

Of course, you'll need a device to go with that new network and data plan. In addition to announcing official support for an LTE-compatible iPhone 5, the carrier will also offer the Galaxy S 4, the Blackberry Z10, the Galaxy Note II, and the HTC One with real 4G speeds. Perhaps most ambitiously, T-Mobile announced that it aims to cover 100 million Americans by the middle of the year (so, in about three months), and 200 million by the end of the year. Bold, to say the least, but it would certainly be a welcome pace. The company's CEO said it has invested over $4 billion in modernizing its network. That number happens to sound familiar.

This 'plays off' the 'Western' film 'genre'.

The most unusual part of the announcement is plans to start a new nationwide ad campaign tomorrow that "plays off the 'Western' film genre." We can only assume this means that Clint Eastwood and John Wayne will show up to extol the benefits of a contract-free smartphone. Oh, and don't tell me John Wayne is dead. That didn't stop Audrey Hepburn. That being said, the ads themselves (sample embedded above) are actually kinda funny.

NEW YORK — March 26, 2013 — T-Mobile has been talking the talk; now it’s walking the walk. The company, known for its “Un-carrier” attitude, today announced a series of moves to address consumer frustration with the unnecessary cost and complexity of wireless.

The moves include radically simplifying its lineup of consumer rate plans to one incredibly affordable plan for unlimited talk, text and Web; ensuring that customers never have to sign another annual service contract through T-Mobile retail outlets; and enabling customers to get the most popular smartphones whenever they want for the lowest upfront cost. T-Mobile also debuted its blazing fast 4G LTE network service in seven major metropolitan areas.

“These bold moves serve notice that T-Mobile is canceling its membership in the out-of-touch wireless club,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile USA, Inc. “This is an industry filled with ridiculously confusing contracts, limits on how much data you can use or when you can upgrade, and monthly bills that make little sense. As America’s Un-carrier, we are changing all of that and bringing common sense to wireless.”

Un-Restricted, Un-Limited

Central to today’s announcement is a radically simple approach to consumer rate plans — the Simple Choice Plan. A break from industry norms, the Simple Choice Plan eliminates restrictive annual contracts, taking pain and confusion out of the wireless experience.

What could be simpler than one consumer rate plan?

Simple Choice asks customers two basic questions: How many lines do you need, and how much high-speed data would you like? Customers start with one line at $50 per month for unlimited talk, text and Web with 500MB of high-speed data. Customers can add a second phone line for $30 per month, and each additional line is just $10 per month. They can also add 2 GB of high-speed data for $10 per month more per line. Unlimited 4G data is only $20 more per month per line. No caps. No overages. Just simple value.

Also, because T-Mobile is the only major U.S. wireless company to stop requiring consumers to sign annual service contracts, customers have far more flexibility with how they buy and use wireless devices. Traditionally, getting a good deal on a new phone has meant agreeing to an expensive service for two years. Upgrades typically weren’t allowed (without significant upfront costs) until contracts expired, and it was often difficult to ascertain the true value of a device offer because it was tied to a long-term annual contract.

With T-Mobile’s un-restricted approach, customers can purchase great devices, pay for them in affordable, interest-free monthly installments, and upgrade anytime they like — not just when their carrier says it’s okay. Customers can even use their own unlocked device. Monthly statements are easy to understand since the price stays constant from month to month, and the device cost is clear and unmistakable.

Customers can find more information about T-Mobile’s Simple Choice Plan at nationwide T-Mobile retail stores, on http://www.T-Mobile.com, and through select dealers and national retail stores.

Un-Beatable Prices on LTE Devices

In tandem with the debut of its 4G LTE network service, T-Mobile also announced today that it will have several 4G LTE-capable devices available, including Samsung Galaxy S 4, BlackBerry Z10, HTC One, T-Mobile Sonic 2.0 Mobile HotSpot LTE and Samsung Galaxy Note II.

· Samsung Galaxy S® 4 is the next generation of Samsung’s popular Galaxy line of smartphones. Exact pricing and timing of availability have not been announced, but the Galaxy S 4 will be available in the second quarter of this year.

· BlackBerry® Z10 is T-Mobile’s first 4G LTE touchscreen smartphone featuring the redesigned, re-engineered BlackBerry® 10 platform, which continuously adapts to users’ needs. Starting today, the fastest and most advanced BlackBerry smartphone yet is available for qualifying customers for $99.99 down with 24 equal monthly payments of $18 for well-qualified buyers OAC. The BlackBerry Z10 is available through all T-Mobile channels. For more information about T-Mobile’s Z10, please visit Media Kit.

· HTC One® is the first T-Mobile 4G LTE smartphone featuring new HTC Sense™ innovations, including HTC BlinkFeed,™ HTC Zoe™ and HTC BoomSound™. Wrapped in a sleek full metal body, the HTC One will be available later this spring in all T-Mobile channels. For more information about HTC One, please visit Media Kit.

· Samsung Galaxy Note® II. Current users of the popular Samsung Galaxy Note II can now take advantage of T-Mobile’s 4G LTE network via an over-the-air software update. For more information about this update and for complete download instructions, customers can visit T-Mobile’s support page at http://support.t-mobile.com/docs/DOC-4962. For more information about the Samsung Galaxy Note II, please visit Media Kit.

· T-Mobile Sonic 2.0 Mobile HotSpot LTE is the first 4G LTE mobile hotspot from T-Mobile, providing simple and affordable on-the-go access to the Internet for up to eight devices. The T-Mobile Sonic 2.0 Mobile HotSpot LTE is available for $29.99 down with 24 equal monthly payments of $5 for well-qualified buyers OAC beginning today. It will be sold through all T-Mobile channels. For more information about the mobile hotspot, please visit Media Kit.

Un-Congested 4G Network

T-Mobile is moving at breakneck speed to expand the capabilities of its network.

Today, T-Mobile launched its state-of-the-art 4G LTE network in seven major metropolitan areas, including Baltimore; Houston; Kansas City; Las Vegas; Phoenix; San Jose, Calif.; and Washington, D.C. The advanced 4G LTE network is expected to reach 100 million Americans by midyear and 200 million by the end of 2013.

T-Mobile is deploying the latest LTE technology, paving the way to LTE Advanced. T-Mobile’s 4G LTE deployment will complement its existing nationwide 4G network — which third-party tests show rivals or beats existing LTE networks — creating what T-Mobile expects to be the fastest 4G combination in the United States. T-Mobile 4G LTE devices will automatically and seamlessly transition to T-Mobile’s nationwide 4G where LTE has not yet launched.

T-Mobile Launches Un-carrier with Wild West Commercial

To underscore its Un-carrier attitude, T-Mobile today unveiled a new tagline, “T-Mobile un-leash.” In tandem, the company will roll out a new nationwide advertising campaign, beginning with a television commercial tomorrow that plays off the Western film genre. The new commercial features a group of four cowboys in black hats riding into a dusty town to the terror of its residents. As three of the cowboys tell town folk they’re going to have to “do what we say,” the fourth, representing T-Mobile, switches to a magenta-colored hat and rides in another direction, saying he “just doesn’t want to do this anymore.” The 60-second ad spot closes with one cowboy musing “I’m gonna miss the guy” while our hero simply states “Oh, I’ll be around.”

Comments

EDGE is important for compatibility reasons. Until all phones are pentaband, EDGE is important because it's universally compatible with almost all cell phones. It lets you make calls, text, and use basic data on any phone.

Shane Wood

now if only they would have a larger coverage area for high speed. Looking forward to possible expansions in order to leave my current carrier.

Paul

Give them time. I think with this fresh infusion of money and spectrum and now the infusion of MetroPCS's (soon) customers and money and spectrum, I think T-Mobile's going to become a formidable carrier. Granted they're not there yet but look at what they've been doing in the past year vs the years before that, they've become a lot more active and doing a lot more. Too bad T-Mobile hates my guts (ran out of minutes on a family plan and racked up over $600 in overage charges. Ended up including it in my bankruptcy. But going contractless means no credit checks or anything, wonder if I'm banned from being a customer in general?

HotInEER

No, because they are still giving you credit when you buy the phone. Their web site says monthly payment on phones for well qualified buyers, and it does not sound like that's you. Now, if you buy your phone out right, you should be ok. I doubt they blocked you from all service.

I know people who owe other carriers money on etf and late bills and they have service with the same carrier now. Granted it was a few years later, but, I think they just paid a deposit.

Freak4Dell

Yeah, they stayed stagnant for years, but man, when they move, they move fast. They got off to a slow start with the refarming, but sure enough, by the end of the year, they had like 50 markets on the list, just like they promised. Even with LTE, when they said 2013, all the tech experts were thinking at least June before anything was live. I'm pretty confident they'll light up most of their big markets by the end of the year at this rate. I hope this no contract strategy pays off for them, and I really hope they start expanding coverage outside of bigger cities. Their rural coverage is almost non-existent. If they could extend that and get closer to the kind of coverage AT&T or Verizon has, they'll easily overtake Sprint for the #3 spot.

ProductFRED

Meanwhile, in New York City...

Paul

lol. AT&T fails to buy T-Mobile but has to give them 4 billion dollars and spectrum. T-Mobile takes that 4 billion and uses it to upgrade their network and deploy LTE, on the spectrum that AT&T had to give them. It also allowed them to support 1900mhz HSPA+ making them more AT&T compatible and International. T-Mobile got a win-win out of this failed buy-out. With their push to be contract-less and their buy-out of MetroPCS, I imagine T-Mobile will become a formidable player in the coming years.

FrillArtist

Will the Nexus 4 be able to access T-Mobile's LTE network??

jakymiwm

I sure hope so!

Eoin

with what LTE? Isn't is LTE-less?

Freak4Dell

It has the proper bands. One of the updates killed the LTE radio, so you'll have to flash the old radio back. After that, it should be able to access the network just fine.

yao ket

Mine is able to with the old .33 radio. 33 megs down but no audio on calls since I have stock jb 4.2.2.

It's unfortunate that their Corp Headquarters doesn't include LTE this time around. Seattle/Bellevue area is sadly lacking.

HotInEER

I wonder how far out this LTE is for Baltimore/Washington DC. I live in the burbs about 40 min out. I would be surprised if they went that far. I hate their coverage map how the lump 3g/4g together so you have no true idea of their 4g coverage areas.